Admittedly, after being announced as finalists in the upcoming Malta Communications Authority 2013 eBusiness Awards, we have taken a closer look at the services that this governmental organization offers.
One of these services is the vetting of applications for the eShop trust mark. Here is more information according to the MCA website:
eShop is an electronic shopping trust-mark for consumers and retailers. It embodies a harmonised set of electronic shopping principles that aim to support eCommerce and increase online sales. It reassures consumers that they will receive reliable and trustworthy services from eShop verified traders.
The eShop trust-mark provides assurance that:
- You are reliable and trustworthy;
- The conditions of sale are clear and available on your website;
- You respect laws on eCommerce, Distance Selling and Data Protection;
- A dispute resolution procedure is in place if anything does go wrong during the transaction;
- The information provided by the customer to you will not be used for spamming;
- You will advise the customer if ‘cookies’ are required for the processing of data.
To be awarded the trust-mark, you must implement the eShop Code of Conduct and it is the responsibility of the MCA to grant the trust-mark after having carried out the necessary checks to confirm adherence to this Code of Conduct. A mechanism is in place to ensure that the trust-mark on verified websites is authentic. When consumers click on the logo on your website, eShop confirms that you are verified and displays the certificate of your online shop.
After learning more about the trust mark, we knew that this was the level of quality that we wanted to operate at. It was also important for us to show that we operate at high standards in order to assure our clients that they are trading with a reliable service provider.
A few days after applying and satisfying all the requirements, we were awarded the eShop trust mark by the MCA. The mark, which is visible on this blog post, is now being displayed on several pages across the website.
In your opinion, how important are such trust marks when making purchasing decisions for your company?
Clever Accounting recently attended a Merchant Risk Roundtable organized by MasterCard Worldwide, at the Westin Dragonara Hotel in Malta.
The seminar touched upon a number of important topics 
all with the aim of reducing risk while doing business online. Security receives the highest priority in our day to day operations at Clever Accounting and we feel that many of the points brought up during this roundtable should be discussed. To this end we thought of sharing some of these points with you.
New Developments
MasterCard are working hard to make credit card transactions safer. For face-to-face (or card present) transactions the chipped card has been introduced while for online transactions they are implementing what is known as 3D secure. Although some may consider these introductions of higher security as a hindrance, they help to considerably reduce the risk to the merchant and the bank.
Now more attention is being placed on the weakest link in the whole chain of credit card payment. The weakest link is the human link. For example, how many of us know someone who received an email that seemed to be an official email from a reputed entity and unfortunately followed the instructions blindly? Many consider printed documents (including emails and websites) as legitimate. We have to spread the message that there is another step before a click and that is THINK.
What about those who receive a telephone call from a supposedly reputable entity and request the user to use the computer to log in on a site to have the computer fixed from a virus? As soon as the victim logs in, the computer is overtaken by the hacker who requests money to unblock the computer.
We must always stay vigilant and work on the premise that the other party has to earn our trust before we trust them.
Hackers will go to extreme lengths to get sensitive information from victims. Take for example the case where the credit card terminal in a shop was modified to capture both the information on the magnetic strip of the card and the pin number. The introduction of the chip on the credit card has considerably reduced this type of attack.
Security as a priority
Here at Clever Accounting we pay a lot of attention to security. Protecting our clients’ data is very important for us and we go the extra mile to constantly check that our servers are up to date and that data is safe. Our aim is to remain at the cutting edge of technology to provide a secure and reliable service.
In conclusion, as businesses and consumers, we must always remain vigilant and we must stay informed about the security issues of doing business both online and in a face-to-face manner. This will give us the peace of mind that comes with doing business with entities who hold information security in high regard.
Clever Accounting helps small business owners and accountants to record their accounts, carry out bank reconciliation, invoicing, tax, and to generate accounting reports and financial statements. It is a fully-featured online accounting system that is easy to use, secure, and affordable.
